This week, 38-year-old Carmelo Anthony took to social media to post a video announcement that he is officially retiring from the NBA after a 19 season career.
Throughout his 19 seasons Anthony mainly played for the Denver Nuggets and the New York Knicks, but his career also included shorter stays with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, and the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite coming from one of the best draft classes in the NBA, the same class as LeBron James and Dwayne Wade, Anthony will hang up his jersey with no championship ring on his finger.
Despite the lack of championship title, Anthony has received an exceptional amount of accolades during his basketball career. He has been on the Olympic Basketball team and won three gold medals with Team USA, played in 10 All-Star Games, 6 All-NBA teams, and was on the NBA’s 75th anniversary team last year. Anthony also won the scoring title in 2013 and is currently ranked 9th in the league for all-time scoring with 28,289 points.
In his retirement announcement, Anthony expresses his gratitude for the journey that got him where he is today, says goodbye to the game, and passes the torch to his son, Kiyan. Anthony said, “But this bittersweet goodbye to the NBA, I am excited for what the future holds for me. When people ask what I believe my legacy is, it’s not my feet on the court that comes to mind, nor the awards or praise, because my story has always been more than basketball. . . So Kiy, chase your dreams. Let nothing hold you back. Let nothing intervene. My legacy now and forever lives on through you.”
16-year-old Kiyan is the child of Anthony and his ex-wife La La Anthony; the couple has been separated for multiple years, and La La filed for divorce last year. La La has told the media that the relationship began to deteriorate once Anthony was traded from the Nuggets to the Knicks in 2011. Some time around 2018, Anthony eventually had an affair, resulting in his now 5-year- old daughter, Genesis. Despite their relationship going south, La La and Anthony remain on good terms and continue to co-parent their son, Kiyan.
Anthony has received a multitude of thank you’s and congratulations on social media over the past few days, many from NBA teams and other star players. NBA Commissioner, Adam Silver, tweeted from the NBA account yesterday saying, “Carmelo Anthony is one of the NBA’s all- time great players and ambassadors. We congratulate him on a remarkable 19-year career and look forward to seeing him in the Hall of Fame.” The Knicks and the Lakers both shared their congratulations to their teammate; the Lakers even included a video from LeBron, AD, & Rui where LeBron tells Anthony he is “one of the greatest players I’ve ever seen play.”
Anthony is definitely correct in labeling his departure from the league as a bittersweet goodbye. Over the past 19 seasons, Carmelo Anthony has greatly impacted the game of basketball and the people and communities around him. With his son, Kiyan, being an up and coming player currently still in high school, Anthony fans will be more than ready to welcome him with open arms as he continues his basketball career.